


Why Are You Two Like This?

by TheDarkestDandelion



Series: The Daemon, the Soldier and a Stolen Bio-Weapon AU [12]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Ardyn Being Ardyn, Brotherly Love, Confusion, Embarrassment, Fear, Fights, Humor, Mistakes, Multi, Sibling Rivalry, Somnus is a Dick, joy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-21
Updated: 2019-09-24
Packaged: 2020-10-25 00:29:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,802
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20715101
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheDarkestDandelion/pseuds/TheDarkestDandelion
Summary: Somnus is acting strange, and no one can find Ardyn. Which can only mean one thing...Now all Regis, Clarus, and Cor have to do was find out where Somnus has buried his brother.





	1. No I Don't

**Author's Note:**

> This was another story I wrote a while back and forgot to post...
> 
> Please enjoy :)

“Your Grandfather is acting strange today.”

Cor said as he escorted Regis to the conference room. Clarus and Somnus were already there, waiting for the King’s arrival, along with the Marshal of the Crownsguard. Regis needed to get there quickly as they were to discuss who was to become the new Marshal of the Crownsguard as the current one had decided it was time to retire. Cor just thought it would be nice to give his friend a heads up before he went into that meeting because Somnus… was acting weird. And if Regis was already a little on edge, at the Marshal’s sudden decision to leave, seeing his Grandfather like that was really going to freak the King out.

“How so?” Regis asked curiously.

“He is actually talking and being nice to people.”

That was enough to make Regis stop and stare at Cor. What? Somnus was acting like a normal human being? A normal civilised person? What the hell was this world coming too? Were the Six suddenly going to wake up from their slumber and destroy the entirety of Eos?!

Regis rubbed his face, getting all the silly scenarios out of his head, before coming to the most realistic conclusion. “Oh my… What did Ardyn put in his drink?”

“That’s the other thing I can’t find Ardyn anywhere.” Cor said, pretending that he didn’t care his boyfriend had just disappeared off the face of Eos.

Cor had tried ringing him, emailing him, texting him, he even asked Somnus and that was how he knew the Founder King was acting strange. Since Somnus was no help, Cor called Cid to ensure that the mechanic hadn’t cut Ardyn up into lumps and fed him to a pack of wild dogs. Which hadn’t happened… yet. Cor asked the guard and glaive if they had seen His Grace and yet no one had. He had quite literally vanished.

“For fuck sake. Somnus has probably killed him, buried him and is over the moon about it.” Regis muttered, starting to walk again. He was now going to have to have a serious talk with his Grandfather after this meeting.

“Bloody fucking hell!” Cor grunted in annoyance. That was definitely something Somnus would do.

“Cor they’re immortal. I am certain Ardyn will get his own back.”

“That’s not the point. They can’t keep doing this to each other.”

“Relax. It’s not like anyone gets hurt.” Regis said, regretting his choice of words when he saw how pissed off Cor looked.

“You shouldn’t encourage them getting their own back on each other.” Cor hated it when Ardyn and Somnus did this.

Mainly because Regis and Clarus decided that considering Cor was dating Ardyn he could deal with their scraps. Somehow, Cor was going to have to prevent Ardyn from plotting a crime worse than the one his brother had inflicted on him.

The rest of this week was going to be hell.

“Why? It is entertaining.” Regis let out a small laugh, trying not to piss Cor off further.

“You may hate your father Regis, but the only good thing he ever did, was not letting them fight each other.”

“They still didn’t listen to him. They used to fight all the time when I was growing up. As Mors got to the end of his life, they decided that they hated him too much to fight with each other and fought with him instead.”

Okay… Cor couldn’t really argue with Regis there. But that didn’t matter. Regis should not encourage their fights no matter how funny it could get. 

* * *

Cor was right, Somnus was acting very strange. Not once did he attempt to have a nap during this little meeting, nor did he try to speed things along so he could go off and have a nap, and he didn’t openly object to Cor earning the rank of Marshal when it came to a vote between the four of them. (It should have been the five of them, but his uncle was probably under a slab of concrete at this moment in time and was unable to attend) Regis and Clarus thought Somnus was going to object to Cor getting the ranking because of the whole ‘Cor taking his Shield’s arm incident but Somnus didn’t complain. When the meeting was over, Somnus thanked the current Marshal for his service to Lucis and ask that he stay until next week where they would announce the news to everyone, including Cor, on who would take over his job.

Cor was going to kill them for telling him in front of everyone, but they didn’t really care. It was going to be funny to see how shocked Cor would look.

Once the Marshal had left Regis narrowed his eyes at his grandfather and demand that he tell him where he had put his uncle.

“Tell me where Uncle Ardyn is. Now.”

“No.” Somnus said, looking up at the ceiling.

_Okay… was Somnus drunk? Or high? Or… something? _

“Why are you two like this?” Clarus asked, exasperating. Like Cor, he had now grown tired of the immortal brothers endless bickering and on days today when they had to make important political and military decisions, it was just inappropriate to be messing around. But being the Shield of the King, meant nothing to the Founder King and it never had.

“Because we hate each other.”

“Cor is getting pissed off.” Regis warned, hoping that may persuade Somnus to change his mind.

“So.”

“If he hurts you, in order to find out where Ardyn is I will not stop him.” Regis said, knowing that Somnus was not going to talk. He and Clarus might as well get on with the rest of their duties for the day.

* * *

Somnus completely ignored what his grandson had said and got bored.

However, instead of sleeping, he went to the council and got his own duties out of the way, which confused and alarmed all of the council members. They knew that Somnus was supposed to be with them today, but usually, he would turn up do the bare minimum of work and then have a nap for an hour. But instead, he actively did all of his work and some more. He even started a conversation with some of the newer council members and started to laugh with them about a joke he made up.

Lord Dolor and Lady Vultus were concerned for his welfare and contacted Regis, who told them that he had done something to Ardyn. Lord Dolor was quite impressed with that, he never cared for the daemon. Lady Vultus didn’t either but she was worried for his Former Majesty’s protection when the Adagium decided to make an appearance later on in the day. 

“You’re on top form today, your Former Majesty.” Lord Dolor commented when he saw Somnus finally putting down a pen after three hours of solid work.

“Thank you. Anyway, considering that all of this is over, I am going to have a nap.” Somnus said, rising from his chair.

Lord Dolor stood to attention and gave the ancient King a small bow. He was very impressed that Somnus had managed to stay this long without wanting a nap. So, he wasn’t bothered by the declaration. 

Somnus went to leave but was stopped in his tracks by Lady Vultus.

She had never actively stopped him from leaving before, but today, Somnus was being oddly approachable and so she decided to push her luck. When she spoke, she showed nothing but respect for the foundering sovereign of her homeland. “Before you go… would it be possible if you could have a look through these? It’s not particularly important. I just thought considering you are here…”

“Say no more. Saves me doing it later.” Somnus said gesturing for her to hand over the pile of work she had in her hands.

She handed it over and in less than 10 seconds Somnus was back over in his chair, reading through the work and signing everything that required his name. He was powering through the work at lightning speed and Lady Vultus thought that this new-found determination had come out as a result of worrying for His Grace. Or rather worrying about what His Grace was going to do to Somnus when he returned. 

“Your Former Majesty. Are you feeling alright?” She asked, standing at a safe distance from Somnus in case he got snappy. The Founder King didn’t like it when people asked how he was feeling unless it was his family that asked it.

“Yes, thank you for asking.”

“His Majesty just thought you would be slightly concerned because His Grace has gone missing.” Vultus said, knowing that Somnus did have something to do with it, but she asked it anyway.

Somnus let out a snigger. “He has probably gone to annoy my Shield or taken a day trip to Angelgaurd to visit his prison. Nothing to worry about. There all of the correct paperwork is signed.”

Somnus stood up and finally left to have his nap.

“Did someone give him happy pills?” Vultus asked Dolor when she was certain the Former King was out of hearing range.

“Or he got a bash on the head.”

“One can only dream.”

* * *

“Somnus what is wrong with you?” Clarus asked, finding Somnus loitering around outside of his own office.

“Nothing.” Somnus replied plainly.

“Why are you so… happy?”

“Can I not be happy, Lord Amicitia?”

This was getting ridiculous now. Clarus could tell that Cor was starting to get worried about Ardyn and only Somnus knew where his brother was. So, the Shield snapped at the Founder King not really caring for the consequences. 

“Whereabouts have you buried Ardyn?”

“You’ll never know.” Somnus smirked, before walking away from Clarus.

“Somnus!”

* * *

News spread like a wildfire around the Citadel, and the guard and glaive had also become aware that His Grace had gone missing and His Former Majesty had something to do with it and was incredibly happy about it. A few of the guard asked Cor about it and he told them to fuck off, which was enough to end the conversation in the Crownsguard barracks, as no one was willing to test Leonis’s patience in the risk of ending up in a fight with him. No one ever won against him, and a bit of gossip was not worth the risk of a broken bone or two.

A guard and glaive were standing in the gardens, and they had also heard about what had taken place. But because Cor was nowhere to be seen the women started to come up with their own theories as to what might have happened. They came to the conclusion that the Former King had probably put his brother back on Angelguard for saying something nasty to him, but their conversation had to be put on hold when Somnus walked passed them.

“Good afternoon, ladies.” Somnus said, not stopping to give them a proper greeting.

“Good afternoon, Your Former Majesty.” Zarah, the guard responded, bowing her head in respect. 

The glaive, Ava, leant closer to Zarah and whispered so Somnus didn’t hear her. “He’s in a good mood today.”

“What happened?”

Somnus never greeted the guard or glaive. It was just something he never did. The only people who he ever greeted who belonged to those groups were the Marshal of the Crownsguard and the Captain of the Kingsglaive. (He also spoke to Cor, but that was because of Leonis’s involvement with Ardyn and the fact that Somnus used to train him) It was just odd to see the Founder King so open and…

“Wait a second… It’s Zarah isn’t it?” Somnus asked, turning around to address the guard.

“Yes, your Former Majesty.” Zarah bowed again, trying to hide the blush that had started to form on her cheeks.

“If you are free at any point this evening, I would like it if we could finish our ‘discussion’ from last weekend. It is completely up to you of course.”

“Y-yes, Sire.” Zarah stuttered, remembering what happened at last weeks gala.

She had been on duty and for a brief moment her eyes and Somnus’s locked together from across the room, and the next thing she knew, the Founder King had taken her into a sperate room, taking her up against the wall as the party continued. They had both agreed to not talk about the gala again and what happened was just a one-off. But the Founder King appeared to be asking for another… as he put it, ‘discussion’. 

“Good. I’ll see you in my office at around 8:30.” Somnus smirked, before leaving the ladies alone.

“You are shagging him!” Ava nearly shouted, staring at her friend with disbelief.

“It was one time!”

“This is gunna be your second!”

* * *

Cor was livid.

Absolutely livid because now he couldn’t find either Ardyn or Somnus. He wanted to find Ardyn to make sure he was alright and he wanted to find Somnus so he could find out where his boyfriend was. But the Founder King must have gotten wind that he was on the hunt for him and now Cor couldn’t find Somnus anywhere. When he asked the guard, apparently Somnus was just mindlessly walking around the grounds of the Citadel but when Cor went to look he wasn’t there. This was ridiculous. In a way, Cor was sort of glad that the Marshal was leaving as the man no longer cared for how efficient the guard were anymore. Whoever took over the position, better whip them all back into shape otherwise he was going to ask Regis if he would put Clarus solely in charge again, so things like this wouldn’t happen.

As Cor turned the corner, that led directly to Ardyn’s office, he heard Somnus’s voice calling him.

“COR!”

“What do you wa-” Cor grumbled trying to show how enraged he was at Ardyn’s brother.

Without warning, Somnus grabbed his face and kissed him on the lips. Cor’s eyes went wide and he violently pushed Somnus off of him, raising a fist in the air ready to batter him, before screaming in his face. “WHAT THE FUCK!”

“Cor wait! It’s me!”

The man in front of him raised his hands, dropping the illusion to reveal Ardyn standing before him, not Somnus. 

Cor lowered his fist, but he did not hesitate to scold Ardyn for that stunt. “For fuck sake Ardyn! I was about to punch you in the face!”

“Sorry, I forgot to change.” Ardyn laughed giving Cor a cheeky grin.

“Why were you using Somnus’s appearance?”

“Oh, I have been posing as him all day.”

_Right… that would explain a lot. _

“Why?” Cor asked, a little annoyed that Ardyn hadn’t at least told him that was what he was doing today. Cor had been worried sick when he couldn’t find Ardyn earlier and the man in question had been under his nose the entire time.

“Because Somnus couldn’t be asked to do anything today, and I owed him for the throne incident. But after today he is going to owe me.” Ardyn proudly smiled, whilst wrapping one of his arm’s over Cor’s shoulders.

“Do I want to know what you did?” 

“Yes. I sent a member of the guard to his office so he could get laid.”

Cor huffed and removed Ardyn’s arm. “You know there is this thing called boundaries. I don’t think you have any.”

“I can be a nice big brother when I want to be.” Ardyn proclaimed with a sad look on his face. He hadn’t seen Cor all day and now he wasn’t letting him hug him... They were sort of in public… okay, Ardyn could see why he had pushed him away now. 

“What, did you two used to help each other get laid?”

“Yes. Regis and Clarus tried to do the same thing for you, therefore it’s not weird.”

“I didn’t say it was weird.” Cor laughed.

“You were thinking it, my dear.” Ardyn smirked kissing Cor on the nose. 

Cor shook his head, opening Ardyn’s office door. “No. I was thinking that I am in love with a maniac.”

“Awww at least you love me.”

* * *

“Now, you owe me.” Ardyn laughed as he placed both of his hands on Somnus’s desk.

“No, I don’t.” Somnus said, downing his drink.

Ardyn looked at the clock. It was 10:30 so in theory Somnus should be asleep by now, unless he had been up to something for the past two hours. Ardyn knew for a fact Somnus had been busy because he had orchestrated it to happen.

“Yes, you do. The guard remember?”

“I sent her packing.” Somnus said leaning back in his chair.

“Is that before or after you had sex with her?” Ardyn questioned, not wanting to get cheated out of a favour.

Somnus hadn’t done what Ardyn thought he was going to do, he didn’t even let Zarah into his office. He had been cooped up in his office all day because he didn’t want to see or be near anyone. Despite whatever good intention Ardyn might have had, Somnus knew he only sent the guard to him to gain a favour.

_I am afraid brother, that is not happening today. _

Somnus let out a sigh and started to rotate back and forth on his swirly chair. “Ardyn we’re not meant to sleep with the people that work for us.”

“When have either of us ever listened to that rule?” Ardyn laughed, a little harder that time.

Somnus had never listened to that rule and Ardyn was in a serious relationship with a man who was going to become the Marshal of the Crownsguard in a week. (And he was not allowed to tell Cor that) They really should stop listening to that unwritten rule the pair had forged between them.

“Go away.” Somnus waved his hand, tired of his brother pestering him.

“I thought she was nice. You missed out on a chance to make yourself happy.” Ardyn stated.

“Why haven’t you left yet?”

In a way, Ardyn felt kind of bad for his brother. Somnus always fell in love too quickly, but he hadn’t been involved with anyone in a while. Somnus hadn’t been in a serious relationship with anyone since Mors became King and that was bloody years ago. Ardyn actually wanted Somnus to be as happy with someone as he was happy with Cor. Even if his brother was a dick to him, Ardyn still loved him. Ardyn thought that some healthy pushing might help Somnus to see that it was okay to let himself be happy.

“You know, you can’t sleep with prostitutes for the rest of your life-”

“And you can’t have Cor for the rest of yours.” Somnus said bluntly, thinking that he had said that in his head. But he hadn’t. Somnus’s face dropped and he gulped when he saw nothing but rage on his elder brother’s face. Somnus tried to take it back but it was too late. “I didn’t mean to say that. I swear I didn’t mean too.”

“Start running.”

“Okay.”


	2. Yes, You Do

Ardyn smiled to himself shuffling in his chair as Cor slept in his bed. He had rather enjoyed today. He liked playing the part of the Founder King of Lucis. People actually showed him some respect, even if they did talk about how stuck up Somnus was behind his back. It just made a nice change from getting stared at and people wondering if he was going to crack and slaughter the lot of them at any given moment.

He was going to ask Somnus if he could use his appearance more often. Plus, Somnus could stay in bed for a few more hours of the day without getting disturbed. It would be a win-win situation for both of the brothers.

Ardyn let out a sigh as he heard the door to the entrance of his quarters open and someone walk towards his bedroom. Ardyn placed his hands in his lap and waited for the door to open, and his lovely nephew didn’t even bother to knock. How rude.

“What?” Ardyn whispered, gesturing to where Cor was sleeping so that Regis didn’t accidentally wake him up.

Regis stayed in the doorway, glaring at his uncle, as he whispered harshly at him. “Explain to me why Grandfather was found hanging from the ceiling earlier?”

“Because he said something very hurtful towards me after I had been nothing but kind and caring the whole day.” Ardyn shrugged his shoulder’s fighting back a laugh. He thought it was more than enough punishment for what Somnus had said about Cor.

“Really, no one saw you the entire day… You were posing as him.” Regis groaned. This was the thing, Ardyn and Somnus killing each other never had bothered him. But when they killed each other over something as petty as name-calling it slightly annoyed the King. “From now on, no more hanging your brother. Have you got it?”

“I am listening, but it doesn’t mean I will take that new rule on board.”

“Yes, you will.” Regis said a little louder than before.

Because the King knew of a perfect way to get Ardyn to listen to him and do as he was told. He got a ball out of his armiger and threw it at Cor, purposely waking the man up.

Cor instantly shot up and was very confused as to why Ardyn wasn’t laying next to him and why Regis was in Ardyn’s bedroom.

“Now, uncle you can explain to Cor why I am in here and what you did to your brother.”

“What the fuck did you do?!”

Ardyn gave Regis a smile of annoyance before turning to Cor… Regis had just gotten him in trouble.

* * *

The next morning, Cor dragged Ardyn to Somnus’s office and like Regis had done to Ardyn the previous night, Cor didn’t bother knocking and went straight in. Cor thought it was rather petty for Ardyn to murder Somnus for saying something like that. Yes, it was hurtful but he and Ardyn had already talked about this and Ardyn knew where Cor stood on Ardyn being immortal and should just accept the facts for what they were and not be fazed when Somnus was being a prick.

But the first thing that came out of Ardyn’s mouth was: “I am not apologising for killing you.”

“He is.” Cor said, pushing Ardyn closer towards Somnus, to get him to properly apologise for his actions.

“No, I am not.” Ardyn folded his arms across his chest and shook his head like a 3-year-old.

“Cor it’s fine.” Somnus said, not really wanting either of them in here. Ardyn could have done a lot worse than hanging him. Just to ensure that his brother would leave quicker, Somnus decided to take responsibility for the incident. “I mildly deserved it.”

“See… I told you, what I did was just.”

“No, killing your brother is not just. Make up now.” Cor ordered, pushing Ardyn back towards his brother as he tried to walk passed him.

“Leonis. Don’t worry about it.” Somnus said, knowing that Cor was just wasting his breath by this point.

“He doesn’t want an apology and I am not willing to give him one.” 

“There let’s call it quits.”

Sometimes, Cor wanted to hit the pair of them over the head with a baseball bat. They were both infuriatingly stubborn and neither of them acted like they cared for the other. But this was what confused Cor. Sometimes, they could be so lovely to each other. Like Founder’s Day this year, Somnus told Ardyn that he didn’t have to be in Lucis on that day because he knew that Ardyn always got a little upset about the day. The Founder King wasn’t even prompted too say or do any of that, he just did it because he cared. And Ardyn, on Somnus’s birthday, took him to a mattress factory so he could pick out a new bed. Again, no one prompted Ardyn to do that. So why couldn’t they act kind caring towards one another all the time?

Cor held the bridge of his nose and decided to threaten the brothers, as they didn’t appear to want to listen to reason today. “Why did Regis and Clarus give me the job of sorting you two out? If you don’t make up, I’ll… go back to sleeping in my own room, and I will no longer stop him from trying to butcher you.”

“I don’t care.” Somnus replied.

“We both know that is a lie, darling.” Ardyn smiled resting his chin on Cor’s shoulder.

Cor was done with dealing with the pair of them. He rubbed his face and shouted before leaving the room. “I am going to work!”

Somnus thought because Cor left in such a tizz, Ardyn wouldn’t be too far behind him. But his brother stayed and gave him a cat-like smile. The Founder King was just going to ignore him but Ardyn didn’t look like he was going to leave any time soon.

“What?” Somnus asked, with his voice lacking any interest at all.

“I know something you don’t know.” Ardyn sang as he looked around the room.

“I don’t care.”

“Yes, you do. Because I know who the new Marshal of the Crownsguard is going to be.”

“It’s Cor isn’t it?” Somnus asked rhetorically, now regretting letting Ardyn do all of his jobs yesterday.

Somnus liked and respected Cor but… really? He knew it was going to happen at some point but this soon? Now, not only was he the youngest person ever to enlist in the Crownsguard, he was now going to become the youngest Marshal in history. Sometimes, there was only so much glory one person could have…

Ardyn laughed, wrapping an arm around Somnus’s shoulders, before rubbing his knuckles on the top of his head. Knowing the real reason why Somnus was annoyed and it had nothing to do with Cor’s age. “You need to get over it. Gilgamesh is fine with having one arm.”

Somnus growled pushing his brother off him. “You need to piss off before I think of a way to get you back for hanging me.”

“Somnus. I only did that because of what you said.”

“Yes, and I will find a way to humiliate you for making him Marshal.” Somnus snapped, sitting at his desk glaring evilly at his brother.

“You would have been outnumbered in the vote anyway. Let’s face it he really is the best person for the job.”

“And? You do know that some people will think he is only getting the job because he is sleeping with you.”

That made Ardyn laugh. He was finding it more amusing at how pissed Somnus was rather than anything else. “Then they clearly don’t know who ‘Cor the Immortal’ is. He doesn’t even want the position or feels that he has deserved it. Now, ta, ta, brother. I am late for a meeting with your Grandson.”

Somnus sulked when Ardyn left him. Now he just had to find a way to get Ardyn back…

* * *

“Leave my hair alone. It looks fine.” Cor said batting Ardyn’s hand away.

“I just want you to look your absolute best tonight.” Ardyn smiled, ignoring Cor and went straight back to flattening his hair down. Maybe they shouldn’t have had sex just before they were meant to attend the current Marshal’s leaving gala…

“It’s only a leaving gala. And I am on duty tonight, it's not like anyone important is going to care about what my hair looks like.”

“Are you now?” Ardyn raised an eyebrow at that. Clarus told him that Cor wasn’t going to be working tonight because of the surprise announcement that he was surely going to kill them for. Somnus probably had a hand in it. No matter, Regis would forbid him from working the moment Cor was proclaimed Marshal in front of the entire Crownsguard. Oh… he was probably on duty to throw Cor off the scent. Ardyn needed to give Clarus and Regis more credit. Ardyn slapped back on a smile and continued to straighten Cor’s uniform for him. “Anyway, there is no harm in making an effort to wish your brother in arms a farewell, is there? Now, allow me to make you look presentable.”

With a grunt, Cor gave in and stood still as Ardyn made sure he looked, in his words, presentable. “I can dress myself you know.”

“I am aware.”

“One day, I won’t be able to put up with you any longer.” Cor warned as Ardyn walked around him to check if his shirt was tucked in at the back.

“That day hasn’t come yet, so I will take my chances.” Ardyn smiled, stepping in front of Cor again and patting down his shoulders.

Ardyn was so proud of Cor, as he definitely deserved the ranking he was about to be granted. And it had annoyed him that all of this week that he wasn’t able to tell Cor what was going to happen at the gala. Ardyn was pleasantly surprised that Somnus hadn’t told Cor out of spite yet. Or maybe his little brother had something else in mind…

“I think I am okay now.” Cor said dragging Ardyn from that harrowing thought.

Ardyn crushed their lips together for a few seconds and continued to smile. “You look so handsome my darling! When don’t you? I love you.”

“Yes. I know you do. Now, we better get a move on or I’ll be late for work.”

* * *

When they got into the great hall Clarus told Cor that he was to stand near the front today. Which was strange as he always stood near the back. It felt strange being so near the front but at least he was at the side of the room. He felt comfortable being in a position where he could see everything and being at the centre of an event like this, it would be difficult to achieve that. Ardyn, for some reason, was allowed to stand next to him tonight. Usually, he had to be on stage with Regis and Somnus but tonight he told Cor he was sticking by his side. As Cor said before it was only a leaving gala for a member of the guard, after all, nothing too important.

“Can I have everyone’s attention please.” Regis said tapping a glass to the room’s attention. This was one of the many things he hated about being King. Public speaking. When the room was silent, the young King cleared his throat and proceeded with his speech. “Today is a very sad day for many of us, as the Marshal will be leaving us. I would like to say a personal thank you, to you Marshal, for looking after my family, our city and our country for so many years. Your efforts have helped us greatly during this time of War and who knows what position we would be in if it wasn’t for you and all the effort you have put into organising and helped in leading the guard. You will be greatly missed and this gala is the least we can do to thank you and say goodbye.”

Regis gestured for the Marshal to join him on stage so he could shake his hand to say farewell. The Marshal got a round of applause, but he didn’t do a speech. Instead, he turned to the King and whispered something to him before nodding his head and leaving the stage. He only wanted a quiet goodbye after all. His time as the Marshal was over and it was time to pass the torch on to someone who was more worthy of the position and to someone who was younger than he.

Regis gave Ardyn a quick nod to inform him that he was about to make the announcement and to ensure that Ardyn got Cor to get his arse up on stage when it was required. Ardyn nodded back, and the nod did not go unnoticed by the soldier. Cor was just about to pester Ardyn on what it was about, but his plans were interrupted by Regis addressing the room again. 

“I was going to wait until the end of the gala to announce this, but the Marshal has requested that we do this now and we have a joint celebration, to not only say goodbye but to congratulate the person who will be taking over from the Marshal. Myself, His Former Majesty, Lord Amicitia and the Marshal thought long and hard about this decision and we couldn’t think of anyone more suited or worthy to earn the rank of Marshal. Without further or do I would like you all to put your hands together for our new Marshal of the Crownsguard: Marshal Cor Leonis.”

Cor was about to clap as he wasn’t paying much attention and then it dawned on him what Regis had said and the entire room was looking at him. No, Regis did not just do this to him, he never wanted the rank of Marshal and Regis, being the sly bastard that he was, made him Marshal in front of everyone and there was no way he could refuse.

“Marshal Leonis. Please, would you come up here.” Regis smiled, gesturing for Cor to join him.

Cor harshly whispered to Ardyn before moving. “Did you know about this?”

“I most certainly did, now your King wants you on stage.” Ardyn smirked, pushing Cor forward so he would get a move on.

Once Cor had got on stage, Regis shook his hand and congratulated him. Cor looked at Clarus and he had the same sneaky expression on his face as Ardyn had all night. Fucking hell. Why did they have to do this to him?

For the rest of the night, Cor had members of the guard coming up to him, congratulating him and they kept calling him Marshal. That was going to take some getting used to. Now, he knew how Regis, Clarus, Somnus, and Ardyn felt at formal events. It was like he was the honey and the rest of the guard were the bees, swarming around him not leaving him alone. It was suffocating and he couldn’t believe that the immortal brothers had put up with this for 2000 years. 

When Cor finally found some room to breathe, he got himself a glass of water and tried to hide behind a pillar so no one would notice him. He picked the wrong pillar because Somnus was standing near it.

“Congratulations Marshal Leonis.” The Founder King said, making Cor jump a little.

“You don’t mean that.” Cor stated, going back to sip at his water, that he had managed not to spill all over himself.

“I do… I may not be happy with it but you do deserve it.”

“Ardyn hasn’t threatened you to say that, has he?”

“I haven’t spoken to my brother since he told me you had gotten the job.” Somnus huffed. No, he didn’t want Cor as Marshal because of what he did to his Shield. But there was still no denying he was the right person for the job. “I know you will do an excellent job. And… Regis and Clarus are very lucky to have you as their friend.”

“Thank you, Your Former Majesty.” Cor smirked, as he had just gotten some genuine emotion out of Somnus.

Somnus nodded and moved from the shadows and made his way into the crowd of the guard. “Now, I am going to humiliate Ardyn.”

“No Somnus don’t!”

* * *

Cor lost Somnus and tried his hardest to keep to the side of the room at all costs tonight. He had also lost track of Ardyn and that was a bad thing as Somnus was trying to get revenge on his brother. Unfortunately, Cor’s hiding place did not remain a secret for long. 

“How do you feel Marshal Leonis?” Clarus asked, popping his head around the pillar, with Regis at his side.

“Why didn’t you ask me beforehand?” Cor grumbled, hoping that if the guard saw him talking to the King and Shield they might leave him alone.

“Because you would have never accepted the job otherwise.”

“Yeah. And I don’t deserve the position.”

“That is exactly the reason why Regis, the Marshal and myself decided to pick you. Because the people who don’t want the job, usually are the best at it.”

“We know you won’t let us down Cor- I mean Marshal.” Regis laughed, patting Cor on the back.

Tomorrow evening the three of them were going to sit in the King’s office and have a drink to properly celebrate Cor on his promotion. Maybe there Regis and Clarus could fully convince Cor that he was well suited for the job. No one else seemed bothered by the choice. In fact, most if not all of the guard accepted Cor as their Marshal with open arms.

“When have I ever let you down?” Cor said sternly, thinking back to many a time where he had literally had to save both Regis and Clarus arses from a serious hiccup that the King had put them all in.

Regis smiled. “Exactly. Now, I believe Ardyn wanted to have a chat with you.”

Cor’s eyes nearly popped out of his head and he started to panic.

“No! He wants me to dance!” Cor shouted before fleeing without being excused.

Regis and Clarus gave each other a weird look before laughing hysterically. They had forgotten that had been a traditional part of the handover gala for centuries. But they knew for certain that Cor was going to break that tradition and probably quit the Crownsguard all together if they attempted to force him. Oh well, all good tradition would eventually come to an end, they were just glad that this one was the first to go.

“That is the Marshal of the Crownsguard.” Clarus sighed, looking in the direction that Cor had sped off too.

“He can chop a man in half.”

“But is frighten by the mere concept of dancing.”

“We definitely made the right choice.” Regis nodded, fighting back a snigger.

“Yes, we did.”

* * *

Regis told Ardyn about Cor’s reaction and Ardyn made it his mission to find the newly appointed Marshal. Which wasn’t hard. He knew for certain Cor wouldn’t leave the room and he knew for a fact that he couldn’t dare throw himself into a crowd of people in case someone pressured him to dance. So, the immortal daemon went to the very back of the room and found Cor with his back up against a pillar, keeping as still as possible.

Ardyn grabbed Cor’s arm so that he couldn’t escape and laughed when he saw Cor’s face drop. “There you are. Are you hiding from me?”

“Yes.” Cor admitted.

“Why?”

“Because I am refusing to dance.”

Ardyn laughed, grabbing Cor’s hip and pushing him up against the pillar. He ran his hand over Cor’s face and kissed him on the cheek. “I wasn’t going to make you do that. I just wanted to congratulate you on your promotion my darling… or should I say, My Marshal.”

“Strictly speaking I am Regis’s Marshal.” Cor said, looking around to make sure that no one saw what they were doing.

“Nope. You are My Marshal, now and forever.”

“I can live with that Ass Hat.”

Cor smirked, returning the kisses that Ardyn had been planting on him. He liked the idea of being Ardyn’s Marshal. He just enjoyed the idea of being Ardyn’s anything. They stay there enjoying each other’s company and just chatting until they heard Somnus’s voice.

“Don’t get lovely dovely here, if you are going to do that get a room. Here’s your hat Ardyn.” The Founder King pushed Ardyn’s hat into his arms so that it was upside down.

Ardyn felt touched by that gesture as he had put it down earlier that night and seemingly forgot to pick it back up again. He lifted his arms up and placed it on the right full spot on his head before thanking his little brother. 

“Why thank yo-”

Ardyn than blinked as he felt something very sticky, wet, and cold run over his head. It ran down his face, covering his eyes, his hair, and his clothes. He smelt the substance and there was no doubt about it. Somnus had put at least, the insides of 10 eggs into his hat and tricked him into putting it on. Ardyn wiped the substance away from his face and burnt a hole in Somnus’s head with his gaze.

“SOMNUS!”

“That will teach you not to hang me from the ceiling. Enjoy the rest of your night.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was such a silly yet cute fic. 
> 
> I hoped you all enjoyed :)


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